Tourism in Hawke’s Bay set to hit new heights

Tourism in Hawke’s Bay set to hit new heights with increased funding announced by HBRC

Today the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council reached agreement to increase overall funding to Hawke’s Bay Tourism for the promotion of the region.

The baseline funding of $850,000 per annum has been increased in year 1 by $300,000 per annum. A $70,000 annual cost index adjustment has also been applied.

Hawke’s Bay Tourism in conjunction with Central Hawke’s Bay District Council, Napier City Council, Hastings District Council, and Wairoa District Council have developed a long term strategic plan for tourism which aims to grow visitor expenditure to over $1billion by 2025.

Hawke’s Bay Tourism Chairman George Hickton says “The Hawke’s Bay Regional Council have been a great supporter of our work in the last 4 years and have seen the steps we have taken to grow the value of tourism in Hawke’s Bay. This endorsement and increase in funding shows a Council committed to generating strong economic returns for the community in Hawke’s Bay.”

93% of submissions on tourism were in favour of an increase in funding to the Regional Tourism Organisation and included positive submissions from Central Hawke’s Bay District Council, Napier City Council, Hastings District Council, and Wairoa District Council.

Hawke’s Bay Tourism General Manager Annie Dundas says “We, alongside our Council partners, local business associations and the tourism industry have been working on this plan for the last twelve months and have a tourism industry in full support of our plans to grow tourism to the region, so all parts of the region benefit from dollars spent to promote Hawke’s Bay.”

The Tourism 2025 National Framework aims to grow tourism revenue from $24b to $41b by 2025. This increase in promotional funding will allow Hawke’s Bay to compete alongside other regions to gain its share of the projected tourism growth.

Tourism Facts

• Visitor expenditure in Hawke’s Bay was $554m year end March 2014.
(source MBIE Regional Tourism Estimates)

• Visitor Arrivals year end April 2015 +3.9% (source Commercial Accommodation Monitor from Statistics New Zealand and The Private Household Monitor from APR Research)

• Tourism in Hawke’s Bay contributes 6.5% in GDP per annum

• Tourism employs close to 5,000 people in Hawke’s Bay

ENDS

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